Get Lit with All of It: Zakiya Dalila Harris

Overview

Alison Stewart, host of WNYC’s All Of It, continues her virtual book club series with Zakiya Dalila Harris.

In Harris’s book The Other Black Girl, we’re introduced to protagonist, Nella Rogers. As the only Black employee at Wagner Books, she is fed up with isolation and microaggressions. When Harlem-born and bred Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers, she’s thrilled. However, they’ve only just started comparing natural hair care regimens when a string of uncomfortable events elevates Hazel to Office Darling, and Nella is left in the dust.

Then the notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW.

It’s hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realizes that there’s a lot more at stake than just her career.

A whip-smart and dynamic thriller and sly social commentary that is perfect for anyone who has ever felt manipulated, threatened, or overlooked in the workplace, The Other Black Girl will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last twist.

Brooklyn singer-songwriter and loop artist Madison McFerrin who is “making a cappella cool again” according to Pitchfork, will also perform at our July book club event.

How it Works

Get the book, reach out to a friend to join, and read along with Alison and Team All Of It
Follow @allofitwnyc on Instagram where you’ll find polls, questions, fun facts and pictures of other readers
Watch the live video stream here on this page as Alison talks with the author

Viewers are encouraged to submit their questions for the author on Twitter and Instagram.

All Of It teams up with the New York Public Library so that New Yorkers can access the book for free through the NYPL app.

Credit: Photo provided by guest.

Zakiya Dalila Harris spent nearly three years in editorial at Knopf/Doubleday before leaving to write her debut novel The Other Black Girl. Prior to working in publishing, Zakiya received her MFA in creative writing from The New School. Her essays and book reviews have appeared in Guernica and The Rumpus. She lives in Brooklyn.

Credit: Photo provided by guest.

Madison McFerrin is an independent singer-songwriter/producer based in Brooklyn, NY. Her critically acclaimed a cappella EP series, Finding Foundations, led Questlove to dub her sound “soul-appella.” After garnering praise as a Pitchfork Rising Artist and making her debut at SXSW, she mesmerized crowds on her debut US and European tours with her powerful one-woman show. Her performance led legendary KCRW DJ Anne Litt to remark, “there’s some sort of joy and beauty in the way that she performs that really drew me in all that much more.”

Madison’s You + I EP expanded upon her a cappella sound by pairing her timeless voice with modern production by her brother, Taylor McFerrin. The combination proved effective. The COLORS debut of the lead single “TRY” has racked up over 1M views. And since it’s release in December of 2019, You + I has continued to impress listeners with The FADER noting how Madison’s “warm harmonies feel effortless” and AFROPUNK highlighting how “lush production and instrumentation accompany her angelic voice.”

Despite COVID-19’s cancellation of her return to SXSW, Madison has continued to create during quarantine. Via Bandcamp she has released timely new music such as “Stay TF Inside,” which was featured on VICE News – Receiver, and debuted her first foray into beatmaking with the We’ll Be Okay Beatpack. Most recently, her newfound production skills were showcased on her viral track, ”GUILTY,” which perfectly captured the mood of joy and relief following the historic verdict in the trial for the murder of George Floyd.